"Wash vegetables thoroughly before cooking. Mosquito nets and repellents should be used. Try to eat hot food during the season," said Mr Madhusudana Babu, HoD of Medicine KGH

After a long wait, the monsoon has set in for the year. Though the season makes one to search for hot munchies, the time has come to guard oneself from water borne diseases and other seasonal infections. These viruses could turn out to be fatal if left unattended.

The season invites several viral infections like diarrhoea, typhoid, hepatitis A and B, malaria, fever, cold, cough, etc. The time is convenient for mosquito breeding as the rain water gets stagnated, filling the small pools and pits. One can be more prone to jaundice and diarrhoea during monsoon, said HoD of Medicine KGH M. Madhusudhana Babu. “Maintaining personal hygiene by washing hands frequently with soap has become mandatory,” he said.Chlorination of the water tanks should be done periodically, said physician K. Surya Rao. “Leaking taps where one gets municipal water supply pose a threat. As the dirty water gets stored in the seeping pipelines and when the pipe gets opened for regular supply, the contaminated water gets gushed along with the drinking water,” he explained. People who are already suffering from heart, kidney and brain infections are more prone to water borne viral fevers, said another physician V. Srinivas. “ Precautions should be taken to avoid mosquito breeding at home and surroundings. Keep the environment clean from old and unused tyres, coconut shells and other unwanted items where rain water gets stagnated.

Slideshow

Workers carryingout repairs to Visakhapatnam District Collector's Office, as it was damaged in Cyclone Hudhud in 2014 October. The majestic heritage building was designed and built by Dutch engineering company Gannon Dunkerly in 1865 and completed by 1914. Photos: C.V. Subrahmanyam